Book Review: Nine Minutes by Beth Flynn

On May 15, 1975, fifteen-year-old Ginny Lemon is abducted from a convenience store in Fort Lauderdale by a member of one of the most notorious and brutal motorcycle gangs in South Florida.

From that moment on, her life is forever changed. She gets a new name, a new identity and a new life in the midst of the gang’s base on the edge of the Florida Everglades—a frightening, rough and violent world much like the swamps themselves, where everyone has an alias and loyalty is tantamount to survival.

And at the center of it all is the gang’s leader, Grizz: massive, ruggedly handsome, terrifying and somehow, when it comes to Ginny, tender. She becomes his obsession and the one true love of his life.

So begins a tale of emotional obsession and manipulation, of a young woman ripped from everything she knows and forced to lean on the one person who provides attention, affection and care: her captor. Precocious and intelligent, but still very much a teenager, Ginny struggles to adapt to her existence, initially fighting and then coming to terms with her captivity.

Will she be rescued? Will she escape? Will she get out alive—or get out at all? Part psychological thriller, part coming-of-age novel, filled with mystery, romance and unexpected turns, Nine Minutes takes readers into the world of one motorcycle gang and inside the heart of a young girl, whose abduction brought about its fall.

What you need to know going into this book:
***It is violent. I won’t give spoilers, but there are a lot of disturbing scenes. One scene even made me gag. Yes, gag. You’ll understand once you read it.

***This is not a hearts and flowers romance. If you are expecting that or wanting that, move on.

***You will struggle to understand Kit and her actions/feelings.

***It will have you on the edge of your seat, particularly near the end. I think I had my kindle in a death grip.

***After 11 months and 200+ books read over this year, I can finally say I have read a book that floors me. TOTAL BOOK HANGOVER!

Now you know what you are getting into, onto the review . . .

The prologue is unlike anything I could have expected. A true OH MY GOD moment, which catapults you into the story. As you read this story, you can understand why Grizz (the MC leader of Satan’s Army and Kit’s kidnapper) had to pay like he did. While he may love Kit, to the point of obsession, there is no way to justify some of the things he does. He is most certainly morally flawed. For some reason Kit accepts that about him.

I was in love with a hardened criminal. At that point, I think I was starting to wake up from the illusion of my seemingly perfect life with Grizz. How could I convince myself our lifestyle was okay?

As I mentioned previously, you will wonder why Kit stays with Grizz. She has several opportunities to escape. But I think her upbringing really had an impact on her decisions. What would she be going home to? Why leave someone who cared for her and go to those who didn’t seem to love her? Is this flawed logic? Probably, but that’s how I understood it to be.

. . . my brain had calculated the odds of something bad happening as a result of my choice. I’m not saying they were the right choices or smart ones. But I’m saying I knew the risks I was taking at the time. The odds ended up not being in my favor. I accept that.

“You love him and you feel guilty for loving him so you try to use him to make situations better where you can’t. You keep doing it and it’s only a matter of time before it won’t work out.”

I’ve seen other people say that this book doesn’t have a cliffhanger. I think that is misleading. Because this story ends with some HUGE twists that I personally never saw coming, and in my opinion, change EVERYTHING. Then we get a glimpse of book 2, Out of Time, and I am floored again! To avoid spoilers, I can’t even tell you who or what book 2 will be about.

Do I dislike cliffhangers? Usually. Do I think you should wait until book 2 comes out to read this book? HELL NO! This book is a MUST READ!!! LIKE, RIGHT NOW! (No, I’m not having CAP LOCK issues. I am that passionate about this book.) Aside from this book giving my first major book hangover for the year, I think with the level of buzz going on with this book, spoilers will eventually be revealed, and that would truly suck for your reading experience. The shock of the ending is what makes this book so good.

BTW, while this book may be labeled as a Romance book, which could be a don’t-pass-go sign for guys, I would absolutely recommend that men read this. I already told my husband he should read it. This book is an intense, gut-wrenching ride into a dangerous world, with an odd love story, that will leave you speechless and/or begging for answers. So, what are you waiting for . . .

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